Monday, March 14, 2011

Today is National Napping Day

National Napping Day came about because of the time change we have to make because of Daylight Saving Time (which was yesterday). It was invented to ensure that you are able to make up for lost sleep. Most people will lose an hour of sleep over the weekend due to springing forward, but since 1999, there has been an official holiday to help make up for the lost zzzzs.

Boston University professor William Anthony and his wife Camille founded National Napping Day in 1999. The day is an unofficial holiday to help make the transition to each year’s Daylight Saving Time. The special day devoted just to naps is also to help promote the restorative benefits of a short afternoon nap.

I personally think that we as a nation should adopt some form of a siesta every day!

Here's an excerpt from an article I read:

************************************************************"Twenty minutes is long enough to leave you feeling rejuvenated without the drowsy effects of a longer sleep," explains Christopher Lindholst, who founded the company along with partner Arshad Chowdhury.

And to make sure those 20 minutes are as restful as possible, the two men have turned napping into a science.

They custom built the trademarked "pod chair," a swank spherical container that takes its design cues from Stanley Kubrick and the Jetsons. The upper part of the chair blocks out the sight of fellow nappers, while the lower portion adjusts to raise or lower the feet. The room is cooled to a comfortable temperature, and white noise blocks out the city below.

The entire napping process is designed to be quick and easy - the drowsy can walk in, store their bags in a locker, and be asleep within minutes.

The lights around the chair dim to initiate the nap, and when the 20 minutes are up, the back of the chair gently vibrates and the lights slowly come back on.

After visiting the "freshening up" station - complete with breath mints, sprays, and towelettes - the napper can be out the door within 25 minutes.

Mr. Chowdhury first got the idea for MetroNaps when he noticed the toll of sleepiness on his coworkers. He decided to leave his banking career and team up with Mr. Lindholst to start Metronaps. Although they've been in business only a few months, offers have already come in to franchise the pods.

"Airports, hospitals, bus terminals, office buildings, anywhere people get tired and might want to nap, have all shown interest," says Lindholst. Each pod costs about $7,950.

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Well, I guess if you don't have the $7950 for the chair, you may want to try some of these:

Find a big ear to sit under . . . .

Find a tree close by and chill for 25 minutes . . . .

If you have a desk job, continue sitting in your chair, looking at your computer and just fall asleep!